Would you trust a local dealer to help you put

Like many have said there are dealers of all types and proficiency. May I suggest a method to the madness that ought to help you suss out the good from the bad local dealers and in the process also will help you start formulating what you like/look for in a system. If you have multiple local dealers (many are not fortunate to have such a luxury), I would call in advance and ask to talk to the store manager or even owner and explain to them that you are starting out researching/auditioning equipment and that you want to put together a 2-channel (or HT) for around $10K. Describe your room and your listening preferences and let them know that you are serious about making the purchase but that you are seeking their professional advice as to what combination of gear could work given your preferences and the size.shape room you intend to place the system in. Let them know that you would like to listen to a few combinations and that you would not be making a decision immediately following your audition but rather you would like to research the components after you listen to them and maybe listen to other gear following such research. Let them also know that you would like to establish a long term relationship with them as long as you feel you are getting good advice/service. From their reactions, you will immediately start to get a sense for who is open and willing to accomodate your requests and who is a waste of time to deal with. Those who show interest and willingness to let you audition multiple gear combinations on multiple visits without high pressure sales tactics, you ought to cultivate that relationship becuase they are generally showing an interest in establishing a relationship with you and not looking for an immediate sale (as per Elizabeth's scenario). If you only have one or two dealers in your area and they don't fit the criteria above, I would find out if there are any dealers within 3 hours driving that may fit the criteria above.

When you go audition equipment, bring music from different genres and music that you are familiar with. If you are just starting out and don't feel like you know what to listen for, pay attention to one and only one thing - are you getting emotionally immersed in the music playback (tapping your toes, closing your eyes, etc...). If you are not, and finding yourself just looking around in the room and being distracted by other gear etc..., then you should move on and listen to something else. Also if you call in advance and figure out what gear you will be auditioning ahead of time, you can read reviews before hand and try to see if what you read mirrors what you heard during the audition. This way you can start formulating for yourself what your likes and dislikes are and how this translates to audiophile terms/descriptions used in reviews which will start giving you a vocabulary with which to converse with the dealers. [You can also buy Robert Harley's Intro to High end Audio book which walks you through audiophile terms, different types of gear and what to listen for].

Finally, I totally agree with Al that you should start with selecting the speaker first and working your way back. I recognize that this is way more intensive than just showing up at a dealer and asking them for a reco but this process while more time consuming will help you establish a working relationship with a good local dealer, will help you start define what musical attributes you look for most in gear, and will make you a better listner and will likely result in a system that you will enjoy for many years.

Sorry for the lengthy response but hopefully this was of some help. What ever you decide to do, good luck and enjoy the journey. I found the exploration/research/auditioning process to be super fun. I hope you do too.

Buconero....I may live in a dream world but it is exactly what I did 7 years ago when I got into this hobby. I live in Boston and at the time there were 4 local dealers. I followed this exact strategy and the most high end of all the shops in Boston (Goodwins High End comparable to Lyric and any of the NYC shops including Sound by Singer and many others in terms of high end equipment and brands offered minus the attitude)was the one that was most willing to work with me. I have been a loyal customer ever since. I am not saying every dealer will act this way which is why you should feel them out as per my post. Perhaps you did not take the time to read my post but my point was to use this approach to figure out who is willing to work with you and who won't.

One final note Foster 9. If your aim is to bottom fish and get the lowest price, then the dealer network is not the way to go. But if you want to establish a relationship with a local dealer who can provide you with advice and post-sales service, then going with a good local dealer is the way to go. One cannot have it both ways (get excellent service from a brick & mortar dealer) but pay discounted prices you can get from internet dealers who don't care who you are and who don't have overhead to pay. It's one or the other but you can't have both.

Steveaudio...it's funny. Yo must have posted right before me. My experience with Goodwins High End is the exact opposite. I followed the process I outlined above and they were the only shop who really worked with me. Every time I went to audition gear, they would block out 2 hrs in one of their listening rooms and left me alone. Never a single high-pressure sales tactic. They often gave me unvarnished advice and have steered me away from various gear options that they carry because it did not necessarily synergise well with the rest of my system. They have come to my place numerous times to help me place/voice my speakers in my living room (since I moved condos)without charge and I did not buy my speakers from them (the only piece of gear which I have not bought from them). It's funny how different people have different takes on things. In any case, this is neither here nor there. Foster 9. Good luck.

Steveaudio...sorry just read your response (been away from Agon for a bit). That is very surprising. I started dealing with them 7 years ago, so it may be that the personnel have changed over and the proprietor, Alan Goodwin, has placed a priority on customer service. If you ever decide to give them another chance, ask for Paul Chambers (store manager) or Al Moulton, and if you wish you can mention my name, and I can guarantee you that their response will be very different. In any case, we are getting off topic for the OP. Hope all is well.

A lot of good points being made here. I am in line with Whart and Burt in terms of the value that I ascribe to a good "dealer." I think Burt's description of what a good dealer does for a customer is ideally true and as with all things, whether you receive this type of service/knowledge/expertise/support etc... depends on the actual dealer's experience and motivations. As with all things, there is a wide spectrum. Which is why I believe doing your due diligence as I outlined in my rather lengthy initial post will allow you to weed out the bad from the good dealers and to establish a relationship with those who have your interest at heart because as Burt suggests, a happy customer is a profitable customer and a sticky customer. No happy customers = no business.

You will learn a lot about what you are looking for, what aspects of audio reproduction are important to you that will lead you to emotionally connect with the music, and this will give you the knowledge to go down the audiophile path/journey with confidence and you will likely end up with a system that suits you just fine. And by the way, even after you purchase your $10K system, if you establish a good relationship with a local dealer, you will likely continue to audition new pieces of equipment and you may find that your tastes/priorities change over time. But you will only get that exposure once you establish a relationship with a dealer who will accomodate you to audition new equipment at their store or in your system and the journey will continue on.

Most importantly, just have fun and enjoy it all. That's what this hobby is all about after all. Once again, good luck and I hope once you get to the point where you have put together your first system, let us know how it all worked out :-)